She was a noble, a genius at studies, a failure at magic, has a brash and stubborn attitude, and a determination to prove herself without considering the actions or consequences. But at the same time she was still just a girl. And as such there were things that could terrify her and reduce her back to that simple mindset in a heartbeat.

The idea of her familiar dying was one of them.

"Professor! He's not breathing!"

"Why is there blood? Where did these injuries come from?!"

"Somebody get him to the medical wing immediately!!"

Louise felt her chest tighten as she tried to shake the memory away. It wasn't her fault she kept telling herself. She had no idea the familiar she would summon would be a human, let alone one that was so badly injured he was practically at death's door.

Then again nobody had expected it. At first the common reaction was one she had come to expect, laughter. The other students had just mocked her and openly laughed about how only the 'zero' could conjure up something like a human as a familiar. She had expected such a reaction but it still angered her.

I mean a human, really? Of all the things she could have summoned, her sacred, beautiful, and powerful familiar was a human!? She would have taken anything else, anything!! A troll would have been better! And it wouldn't have even been so bad if not for the fact of how he was dressed.

Because only a commoner would dare wear such odd and scruffy looking clothes.

The idea had frustrated her even more so that Louise had begged the professor to allow her to retry the ritual in hopes it was a mistake. But Colbert wouldn't budge and such she was forced to accept that she had a commoner as a familiar. The idea made her a little sick inside.

But before she could even mark the boy as her familiar, Louise noticed he wasn't breathing and that he had blood on his person. And that it was fresh and coming from him.

That had sent her into a panic and had instantly caught the attention of the professor. Somehow her familiar was greatly injured and was practically dying before her very eyes. It had frozen her on the spot even when the professor had called for medical aid and rushed the boy to the medical wing of the school.

Louise had tried to follow, to know what was happening to her familiar, but Colbert had told her to go back to her dorm and that he would call her when they had news. But how could she just accept that? Her familiar was dying, or maybe he was already dead, she didn't know! What she did know was that she had yet to make the contract with him and that if he died before that, then she would fail the test and no longer be a true noble.

That thought terrified her more than any other.

Though Louise would completely deny that she, in any sort of of way, was also concerned and guilt ridden over the idea of injuring her familiar during the ritual and that it may have been her fault he was in such a state.

So now here she was, on her way to the clinic to check in on her would-be familiar against the orders of Professor Colbert.

"Why should I be denied to see my familiar though?" Louise thought to herself, "He is to be mine after all, as much as I dislike the idea. So it's only by my right that I as his master know how his condition and state."

She kept convincing herself but at the same time Louise was nervous. If she got caught chances were she'd be in big trouble. I mean it was only right that a master be concerned over their familiar, but at the same time Professor Colbert had practically ordered her to stay in her dorm and wait for his return. To defy such orders, especially from a professor was not something she would have ever considered doing before.

Bad enough she had a dying familiar on her hands, and one she hadn't even made the contract with, but add to blandly ignoring and going against her teachers? Her mother would kill her for such a thing!!

Louise shook her head to clear her thoughts. What was done was done, and there was no turning back after going so far already. She would simply handle the consequences of her actions later.

Looking on ahead Louise smiled as she saw the room where she had learned her familiar was staying in. Looking down the halls once more to make sure the coast was clear, Louise reached for the door handle carefully.

"I refuse!"

Louise blinked.

What was that?

=========================================================

Ryoga stayed silent as he contemplated everything he had just been told. It was a lot to take in at the moment so he had said nothing as he listened to the two men before him speaking.

Apparently he was in the medical wing of Tristain Academy of Magic after supposedly being summoned for a 'familiar summoning ritual', or whatever the hell it was. According to Colbert, Ryoga's body had been greatly injured either before or during the summon, and he was all but breaking down death's door, for probably the fifth time if he could recall right. As such he was taken to the medical wing and had only just been saved from death a mere three hours ago.

Apparently the fact he was awake and fully healed had shocked the two men as they hadn't expected him to recover so quickly, even with the use of magic. Maybe it was because of his powers? Then again he still wasn't sure if he even had them after losing to Astral and Yuma.

As for the idea of magic, it hadn't bothered him as much as he had thought. Considering all that had happened in his life, Ryoga could state calmly that he had a firm belief in the existence of other powers in the universe, waiting to be discovered and controlled, whether for good intentions or not. But that wasn't exactly the main problem right now.

No, the problem was he had no fucking idea where he was!!

Tristain?

Halkeginia?!

The names weren't familiar at all to him from any of his memories of both the human or Barian world! At first Ryoga had gotten annoyed by the two men when they didn't know about Japan or Heartland city, and had demanded they stop trying to lie to him. But when that old man Osmand had shown him a map of the continent, all he could do was stare in complete shock.

He couldn't recognize a single landscape or name on the map at all.

Not from the human world. Not from the Barian world. Nothing. It was as if all the worlds had been wiped away and replaced with this 'thing' he saw before him.

The only logical explanation he could fathom was that he had been brought to an entirely new world. A world not connected to anything involving the Barian or Astral world, and maybe even the Numeron Code. Though how that was possible was still questionable to him as he was sure nothing short of god level powers could do such a thing.

It was only then that the hard cold truth had hit Ryoga.

They were gone.

Ryoga had been given his life back somehow, but his home, his former life, his friends, they were all taken from him. He was trapped in some unknown and strange new world, and he wasn't even sure if he could ever leave and return back to his own world. And even if he could, what then?

He had lost the Numeron Code, and while he was sure Yuma would do the right thing with it, what would he possibly do? He could no longer be a king to his people, he couldn't just return to his life as a human, heck for all he knew time moved differently here and Yuma and the others may have already been long dead. And even then, after all the sins he had committed, could he really just return to that life? He probably would have just been better of dying rather than living with such thoughts and pain in his heart.

And so, Ryoga sat there in silence, his mind racing and his heart aching, as the two men watched in concern

"I'm sorry," Colbert spoke up with worry and a bit of guilt as he looked at the boy before him. Of all the things he and Old Osmond had expected, another world was not one of them. Of course they too were in disbelief at the idea, but considering the strange gauntlet the boy had on him, the odd clothes, and the boy's reactions just now, that disbelief was dwindling very rapidly, "This must be a lot to take in right now. Had we known such a thing would happen..."

"But you didn't know," Ryoga responds as he keeps his gazed to his clenched fist, "You had no way of knowing. No idea."

Osmond sighs as he looks at the boy, "Indeed. This is not exactly something we are are familiar with or even expected to see in our lifetimes. The fact it is happening now is quite a shock to the both of us. But at the same time, can any of us truly say that we could even prepare for such an event, or that any of us would not act in a similar way to such a revelation?"

Ryoga closed his eyes and sighed, "No."

The old man was right. He wasn't angry at them, he was angry at the situation. Considering he had just been given back a life he shouldn't have had, his mind was still trying to comprehend all of it, and he was emotionally lashing out at whatever he could.

It's not like any of them had planned for this. Besides, getting upset and frustrated wouldn't solve anything. What was done was done, and it's not like he could go back in time and stop it from happening. But that didn't mean he couldn't do anything now either.

He was in a new world after all. A brand new world waiting to be explored and discovered for him with this final chance at life. He had committed many sins in the past, but here, it was a fresh start, a clean slate for him to start over one last time. And most important of all, a chance for redemption.

A chance to make things right for himself. To try and make up for all the evil he had done in his past lives as both a human and Barian. It was something he never expected to be given, but here it was, right before him awaiting to be taken. And while he may have felt unworthy of such a gift, he wouldn't pass it up either.

He would adapt. He would learn as much as he could about this world, learn how to survive in it, learn what the rules and powers are, and search for any answers he needed. He would live, and redeem himself through his actions on this world, and not waste this final chance given to him.

And if somewhere along the lines he found a way back home?

Well, he'd cross that path if it came to it.

"Sorry," Ryoga apologized as he looked up at the two men, his eyes now filled with understanding and determination, which surprised them, "You're right. None of us could have expected this, and it's not your fault this happened. It was just a strange twist of fate or whatever, and nothing can be done to change it right?"

"Uh, y-yes right," Colbert replied as he adjusted his glasses. The boy's change in emotion startled him a bit, "But what about you? I mean after all you've been told?"

Ryoga let out a small laugh as he smiled, "Yeah well, sometimes you just have to deal with the dice life throws at you. Besides, I'm here now, so really what else is there to say? I'll just have to take things one step at a time and see what awaits me down the road."

"Hohoho, I like this one. He's quite quick to adapt huh Professor Colby," Osmond spoke as he rubbed his beard happily while ignoring Colbert's comment about his name. He soon stopped however and looked at Ryoga with a serious expression, "However I would recommend keeping the information of this other world you're from a secret. Not many here would believe such a tale, but even so such a story would bring up questions and complications I'm sure none of us wish."

"Well," Colbert begins as he puts his hand on his chin in thought, "We should probably give you back you're stuff. You came with several strange items I'm sure you would want back. There's also still the issue of the familiar Contract to deal with."

"Familiar Contract?" Ryoga questioned.

"Ah yes, the Valliere girl," Osmond spoke up as he scratched his head, "She was the one who summoned you here you see. So essentially that makes you her familiar. Though I'm still not entirely sure if that's a good thing or not."

"Familiar? What exactly is that? You mentioned before when you spoke of how I was brought here, but you never specified what it is," Ryoga stated with narrowed eyes. He had a funny feeling about this.

"Well to summarize," Colbert began, "At the start of the new year, the second years of the academy take part in a familiar summoning ritual. This is a sacred and holy event that allows students to summon forth a partner for them. These are what we call familiars. They are chosen based on the summoner themselves to be choosen as the best suitable partner for them. This partner is then bonded to the student for their whole lives a-"

"Their what?!" Ryoga interrupted loudly as the two men jumped back.

"I-Is something wrong?" Colbert ask confused and hesitantly.

Ryoga glared slightly at the man, "You said their whole lives. What exactly do you mean by that? What the hell exactly was I summoned here for?"

The two men looked at each other worriedly. The boy had not reacted as expected, but given his lack of insight of the world it was half expected. Still though.

"Well, in short. You were summoned here to serve Miss Valliere as her familiar partner and guardian. To protect and obey her for all life and serve and fulfill any request she ask of you without question," Osmond finished, deciding to be direct with the boy.

Ryoga remained strangely silent.

Serve? Obey? Those sounded VERY much like-

"M-Mister Ryoga?" Colbert called out.

"I refuse."

Colbert and Osmond both blinked. Did they hear him right just now? Colbert looked at the boy with confusion, "I'm...sorry? What?"

"I refuse!"

The two men's eyes widen as they look back at each other and then back to the boy as Osmond speaks, "W-what do you mean you refuse?"

Ryoga looks up at both of the men with a very firm and hard gaze, "You're asking me to be a servant right? To serve someone who I not only don't know, but for my entire life here in this alien world? I may have been brought here against my will sure, but what you're saying now is I don't have any choice in what I get to do here, and that I have to be some sort of slave right?!"

"W-well it's not as bad as you make it sound," Colbert speaks up, "But-"

"I refuse."

"But it's a sacred ritual that has bee-"

"I refuse."

"But this has never happen-"

"I refuse!"

"P-please be reasonable here. We're only trying to say th-"

"I REFUSE!!!"

"AHH!!"

The three suddenly stop as a loud shriek and crash is heard near the door. Turning their gaze to the now open door, they quickly take note of the mess of pink hair lying on the ground in a sprawled out fashion, and with it an embarrassed and guilt looking Louise.